22 :: Adding Maps to Popcorn

I can’t remember exactly when I figured out what a JavaScript library was, but when I finally figured it out, so much more of what I reading about web development started making sense.

It can be very confusing to a newcomer. For example, Mozilla’s Popcorn Maker could easily be mistaken for just another web application that adds ‘events’ to videos. But it’s actually a little more complicated than that. Popcorn Maker is the very friendly interface to the Popcorn.js API. Which means that you can bypass the web interface and create the code directly to generate the same effects.

I became interested in Mozilla Popcorn Maker after watching this TED Talk by Ryan Merkley that put the site into some necessary context for me: “Videos on the web should work like the web itself: Dynamic, full of links, maps and information that can be edited and updated live”

If you look at the docs and the demos, it all looks a little intimidating. But not to worry, that’s why there’s the web application interface for the API: Popcorn Maker! It makes video annotating easy!

I’m rubbish at video, and yet I was able to make this in about an hour or so in an afternoon:
(I made the screencast video itself with screenr.com and then supplemented it with popcorn)